Winter Solstice
by finicky
Summary: Fire Lord Zuko realizes that maintaining peace among all Nations takes more than just ending the Hundred Year War. In the midst of chaos, he unexpectedly finds comfort and solace in someone he knows he cannot have. [Zutara, Kataang]


**Winter Solstice**

Summary: Fire Lord Zuko realizes that maintaining peace among all Nations takes more than just ending the Hundred Year War. In the midst of chaos, he unexpectedly finds comfort and solace in someone he knows he cannot have.

Pairing(s): Zutara, Kataang, TophxAang

Author Notes found at the end of the chapter.

* * *

 **CHAPTER ONE**

Zuko, in his regal clothes of black, red and gold, quietly stood in the center of the grand library in the heart of the Royal Fire Palace. The ceiling-to-floor curtains were all drawn shut, leaving the low-burning fireplace, apart from the dimly-lit table lamps situated strategically across the humongous room, as the lone source of light. The young Fire Lord was looking up at the huge painting of the estranged Royal Family— _his_ family—hanging on the wall above the mantelpiece, his mind lost in deep thought.

First, he took note of his father's stern features, his sharp golden eyes reflecting not one ounce of warmth, or any remotely human emotion, for that matter. Zuko could not remember any one time that those eyes looked at him without contempt and disappointment, and now realized that it was probably for the best, as the only way to please his father would have been to share his grandiose delusion of the Fire Nation's superiority over the other nations.

Next, he observed his mother's kind, smiling face, in stark contrast with the demeanor of her husband right next to her. The warmth in Ursa's eyes was probably the only redeeming factor of the otherwise depressing portrait. Zuko's chest hurt just at the thought of her melodic voice and warm embrace. In spite of all his efforts, with the whole Fire Nation's army at his disposal, she was still nowhere to be found, and it had further aggravated the stress he's been experiencing as the new leader of a devastated nation suffering from the repercussions of losing the Hundred Year War. _Maybe at another time,_ he told himself with a heavy heart.

He finally moved his attention to five-year-old Azula's small, haughty form standing right next to Ozai. Her characteristic lopsided grin was accurately portrayed, as well as that manic glint in her wide eyes that implied nothing but ideas that are best kept at a place where the sun doesn't shine. Although Zuko had yet to visit her since he had locked her up in the institution six months ago, he did make it a point to have the warden inform him of her progress on a weekly basis. So far, it seemed like his volatile sister was still in a straitjacket and is putting up a real fight against her caretakers, subdued only by heavy sedation. That was yet another troublesome issue for Zuko, for as much as he would like to disown her, Azula _is_ still his sister, and in spite of the numerous crimes she had committed, she is still part of the Royal Family, and therefore must be treated with dignity. He was beginning to feel a headache just at the idea of having to confront her sometime in the near future.

The fourth and last figure in the portrait, a seven-year-old boy sitting on the floor before his mother, looked back at Zuko innocently, a half-hearted smile plastered on his pale, smooth, scar-free face. Zuko unconsciously clenched his hands into fists on either side of him, a sudden wave of anguish coursing through his body. Why did his life have to be like this? For the better part of his existence, he had struggled to earn back his birthright to the throne, and for what? _For this?_

Indeed, Zuko got back his royal status in the end. The war has ended and the era of peace has begun. But after everything, he was still _alone_ in this dark room, left to carry the sins of his family and tasked with the huge burden of restoring the Fire Nation in its former honor and glory.

It wouldn't take much more to get the Fire Lord's mind to break down from all the pressure. He suddenly wished his Uncle Iroh was there to comfort him at this very moment.

"Zuko, are you there?"

Said man was snapped out of his reverie as another figure appeared at the doorway to the library. He looked away from the portrait and was greeted by Mai's poker face partly illuminated by the fire. Zuko could tell that she was upset even though her face appeared devoid of any expression.

"I've been looking all over for you," his girlfriend began before he could even greet her.

"I'm sorry." Zuko closed the space between them and attempted to reach for her, only for his outstretched hand to be swatted away rather violently. He blinked in surprise. "Mai, is there something wrong?"

The black-haired girl took another moment glaring at him before saying, "Aren't you forgetting something?"

She was met with a blank stare and pointed silence.

"I was waiting for you at the restaurant for five hours, Zuko," Mai said in a dangerously low voice. "I've never felt so humiliated in my life, and that's saying something because I've even gone to jail and dishonored my family just for you!"

It hit Zuko with the force of a rampaging rhinoceros. Oh gods, they were supposed to go out today! "Mai," he began quickly, "I never meant to—I was stuck in a meeting with the generals—I can explain—"

"You should've heard them mock me," the noblewoman spat, though her voice remained even. " _Here comes poor little Mai, still pining after Lord Zuko's attention. What was she thinking, the Fire Lord just used her to help in the Avatar's cause_ —"

It was now Zuko's turn to flare up. "You know that's not true," he cut in sharply.

"— _She was that crazy Lady Azula's friend, right? She betrayed her for him. No honor at all. Everything just to put her family line in the throne_ —"

"That's enough!" Zuko said loudly, unconsciously swinging an arm and making the fireplace burst into tall flames. He got a grip of himself quickly and let his arm fall limply on his side.

He looked intently in his lover's eyes, which, for a moment, flashed with something he had never seen before…

"…Mai, did I scare you?" he asked, horrified, realizing that when he had accidentally firebended, she had quickly assumed a defensive stance, one hand inserted in the inside pocket of her robes, most likely gripping her knives underneath.

Mai even looked surprised with herself for a second, before she finally relaxed. Her facial expression softened for the first time since she came in the room. "I'm sorry, Zuko," she said, sounding like she meant it. "You have not been yourself these past few weeks, and I can't help but think…" her voice trailed off uncertainly, an uncharacteristic trait of hers as she was usually someone who didn't skip a heartbeat in speaking out her mind when she deemed it necessary.

"Think what?" Zuko wanted to know.

The black-haired girl looked to the side, avoiding his imploring gaze. "I think you need a break. I know it's been an overwhelming six months because you had to ascend to the throne so soon…"

Zuko heaved a deep sigh. "I can't express how sorry I am, Mai. I have no valid excuse for my actions. I've been horrible. Please forgive me and let me make it up for you."

To his utter surprise, Mai shook her head. "You are now the Fire Lord. Of course you're busy. It was stupid of me to demand for your precious time."

Zuko didn't like where the conversation was going. "Mai—"

Her face resumed its default blank expression. "I think it's best if we end this relationship for now."

A pregnant silence followed, save from the low crackles coming from the fireplace. Zuko gaped at her, unable to grasp what she had just said. Mai returned his shocked expression with a neutral one, patiently waiting for his response.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Zuko said, "You can't be serious." After the initial shock wore off, his insides began to bubble with something unpleasant. "You can't do this to me."

"It's not working," she said bitterly. "You're not just my childhood sweetheart anymore. You are now Fire Lord Zuko. Your heart, mind and body now truly belongs to the nation. It's me who has been selfish and insensitive of what you're going through." She momentarily paused, before she lowered her head. Zuko saw a single tear trailing down her cheek.

"We don't have to do this anymore," she said with a tone of finality in her voice.

Zuko was at a loss for words. This has not been the first time that Mai had attempted to break up with him, but for some reason, this time felt differently. Briefly, he recalled their relationship for the past half-year, and remembered some days when he and Mai would barely see each other. Granted, he had been exiled _for years_ without contact with her, but they had easily picked up from where they left off the moment they had been reunited, though that had been cut short too when he had finally decided to switch allegiances. Now that the war was over and there was no Azula to complicate their relationship, Zuko had only expected things to get better for him and Mai from then on.

However, the moment he had ascended to the throne, he quickly found out how very wrong he was.

Being a Fire Lord was far from what he had initially imagined as a child. He had imagined the Fire Lord as an omnipotent person who had everybody at his beck and call, a man in control of the universe. For a certain period, his father, the former Fire Lord Ozai, was exactly that: the most powerful man in the known world. But being the Fire Lord in a new era of peace was an entirely different story. Now, the Fire Lord is the man responsible in reversing the damages that had been done by his very own people. This came with the difficult task of extensive policy reforms and documenting war crimes, on top of reviving a collapsed economy as the nation's finances had been drained from funding the military in the past hundred years. Every single day, Fire Lord Zuko had to attend council meetings, struggle to unite the divided noble families of the Fire Nation and at the same time ward off Ozai's influential sympathizers who were still at large in some areas of the nation. All this, with having to make himself visible to the common people as much as possible in order to exude the illusion of keeping things under control, had put the young Fire Lord's personal relationships at the backseat in his list of priorities.

For Mai, this must have meant having to endure months and months of being stood up on and treated like a stranger. In the few times Zuko had bonded with her, his mind had been admittedly wandering elsewhere that was most likely related to work. Mai has been contributing to efforts in rebuilding the nation in her own way as a noblewoman, and this had further put a strain on their relationship as they had both become two very busy people with conflicting schedules.

Now that he thought about it, Zuko felt deeply ashamed of himself for letting her feel this way all along.

His love for her when they were still innocent children remained. However, they had come a long way since then, and time had changed them to two individuals who now barely knew each other, and now existed for seemingly different purposes.

She was right. They had to end this for the sake of both their sanity, before they could hurt each other even more. At least, for now.

Wordlessly, Zuko stepped forward and pulled Mai into a tight embrace, much to the latter's surprise. Mai took a moment to register the Fire Lord's warm body against hers, before she gave in and returned the melancholy act, resting her head on his shoulder and letting her tears flow freely on his clothes. He didn't need to speak for her to know what his response was.

* * *

"Katara!"

Blue eyes flew open at the sound of the name. Katara snapped out of her trance as a resounding pair of footsteps reached her ears. Immediately, she uncrossed her legs and got on her feet, turning around just in time to see a young child from the tribe appear around the giant rock that separated Katara's meditation place from the rest of the world.

"What is it?" Katara kindly asked the new arrival.

"Avatar Aang has returned form his trip!" the little girl said, excitement written all over her place. "He's been looking for you!"

Katara barely had time to react before the girl jumped forward and started dragging her by the hand back to the rest of the tribe. Even from a distance, Katara was able to see the giant white fluff that was Aang's beloved bison, Appa, resting in the heart of the community. From around him, construction of tall buildings was in full swing; as reparation to the damages the Fire Nation had inflicted on the Southern Water Tribe over the years, the newly-crowned Fire Lord Zuko had ordered for the immediate redevelopment of the South Pole, as well as the construction of walls much like that of the Northern Water Tribe's to fortify the tribe's defense. Many people from the North Pole had travelled down to aid in the construction as well, and so, what was once a desolate smattering of igloos filled with women, children and elderly was now a budding city with a steadily-growing population.

Katara silently wished her mother had lived to see all of this first-hand.

She was yet again snapped out of her thoughts when the girl pulling her suddenly came to a halt. Katara blinked and noticed a lean, thirteen-year-old boy standing not ten meters ahead, his shaved head brandishing an arrow tattoo that went down to his forehead. His wide, innocent eyes practically gleamed when they landed on her.

"Katara!"

Katara barely had time to react when Avatar Aang took two giant leaps to close the space between them and engulfed her in a big bear hug.

"Katara, I missed you so much!"

Katara smiled and gently returned his hug. "I missed you too, Aang."

From around them, the small crowd that had gathered to greet the Avatar emitted a chorus of "awwws" and clapped their hands enthusiastically, making a faint blush creep up Katara's cheeks.

Since the war ended and the world had set on a fragile state of peace, the Avatar, together with the now-public Order of the White Lotus, had relentlessly travelled across the different nations to declare a new era of harmonious coexistence and aid in the recovery of villages and cities affected by the war. This had meant him and Katara only seeing each other twice since Ozai's defeat, as the latter had chosen to go back and stay at the South Pole to reunite with her tribesmen. In spite of that, Aang seemed to be quite genuinely happy with the mutual understanding they had for each other, much so that he had come out of his normally shy and modest shell to publicly show his affection towards her. Of course, the formerly tight-knit and recluse members of the Southern Water Tribe did not take this situation lightly, as intermarriages between two nations were not a common practice among the Water Tribes.

But then again, this was the Avatar they're talking about. How could they refuse?

To Katara's growing frustration, even the women of the tribe had started coaxing her to afternoon tea every day to give her unsolicited advice on marriage and family life.

"He's the _last_ Airbender, you know," one of them had said knowingly. "He has to keep his bloodline going to rebuild the Air Nomad civilization! He needs to get a faithful wife to sire his little airbender kids… _soon_. This is why you need to be ready when the time comes, Katara!"

While Katara indeed loved the Avatar, the thought of marrying him in the imminent near future, much more giving birth to _his_ kids, did bother her for some unfathomable reason…

"How have you been?" Aang asked once he broke the embrace. "I can't wait to tell you the things we discovered when we went to this remote village in the Earth kingdom!"

"I'm sure they're amazing, Aang," Katara said smilingly. To her surprise, however, Aang gently held her hand and gently raised it to his lips.

"But it's not as amazing as seeing you again," the airbender said in an uncharacteristic bold move.

The act, which nobody within a ten-foot pole missed, elicited loud squeals from young girls and approving murmurs from the elderly. From the distance, Katara heard a villager shout, "It's happening, people! Avatar's gonna marry into the tribe!"

"Katara's not yet of marrying age, silly!" another villager snapped back at him.

"Well, _not for long!_ " a third voice chimed in. "It's gonna be Katara's sixteenth birthday in a few months!"

At that, Katara couldn't help but blush and turn around at the source of arguing voices, accidentally knocking off Aang's hand away. "Stop talking as if I'm not here!" she said vehemently, but the villagers just giggled at her antics.

The ruckus was thankfully interrupted by the arrival of Sokka and Hakoda.

"Sokka!" Aang brightened up at the sight of Katara's older brother, who distractedly looked away from his father and beamed back at him.

"Aang! It's been a while!"

The two hug each other briefly. "Chief Hakoda," Aang greeted Sokka and Katara's father respectfully. "Thank you for having me and Appa once again."

"You are always welcome here in our little village, Avatar," Hakoda greeted warmly. "We are very glad to have you here."

Aang looked at the ongoing construction happening around them. "It's a not-so-little village now, I think."

"Yeah, isn't it amazing?!" Sokka gushed. "I'm in charge of overseeing the building of the wall! Oh man, feels so good to have all these funds to build things! Pays to be close pals with the Fire Lord, huh?"

"The Fire Lord is working hard to revive old, broken ties," Chief Hakoda said, nodding approvingly. "He is proving to be a real, honorable man a thousand times more than his father and grandfather had ever been..."

All this talk about Zuko had Katara wondering about their foe-turned-ally-turned-friend team member. It would be at least almost a year since Zuko was proclaimed as the new Fire Lord. The last time she had seen him was during his Coronation Day. She remembered feeling surprisingly emotional and proud as Zuko, in traditional Fire Nation royalty garb, went up the flight of stairs towards the platform where the Head Council stood, one of whom held a cushion where the flame-shaped crown sat in all its glory. The top of Zuko's usually unkempt dark hair was tied up in a small bun at the back of his head, leaving the rest falling freely around his scarred face. Katara knew that this had been the one day that Zuko had been looking forward to all his life: regaining his honor and birthright to the throne…

…which was why she recalled being confused as she watched the councilman place the crown on top of Zuko's head. Even from afar, she had seen Zuko's blank, emotionless eyes as he turned to face the audience as the newly-proclaimed head of the Fire Nation, his lips pursed in a straight line despite the joyous atmosphere around him.

Katara, back then, had wondered why he still looked sad.

"How is Zuko, by the way?" she unceremoniously piped up, interrupting the ongoing conversation among the males.

"I haven't heard directly from him," Aang said in deep thought. "Maybe I should drop by the Fire Nation Capital soon…"

"Well, I heard he and that scary knife-throwing girl broke up a couple of months ago," Sokka said offhandedly.

Hakoda, Aang and Katara all blinked at him in surprise.

"How do you even know that?" Aang asked.

"Suki said so in her most recent letter," Sokka said with a nonchalant shrug. "Apparently, the Kyoshi Warriors were hired to be Zuko's bodyguards, so she knows all the Fire Nation royalty gossip going around."

Aang frowned at this. "Why hire the Kyoshi Warriors? Don't they have enough guards for the Fire Lord?"

"Well, if I were the new Fire Lord, a formerly banished prince who betrayed his father to join the Avatar," Chief Hakoda said thoughtfully, "I would be pretty much on my toes too. I won't feel comfortable walking around my palace unguarded surrounded by these generals and councilmen who used to work under my deranged father and sister."

The pointed silence that followed his musings made the chief wonder if he had said something wrong.

"If you put it that way," Aang finally said, concern marring his usually smiling face, "then maybe we should go and check up on him as soon as possible."

* * *

A woman in a traditional green-and-red warrior uniform, her face concealed behind thick red and white face paint, purposefully walked and came to a halt before a pair of heavy doors. On each side of the doors, a palace guard stood quietly, their hands concealed behind their back.

"Lady Suki," one of them greeted, as he and his fellow guard gave a brief salute.

Suki returned their salute. Then, she stood a little straighter before raising a fist to knock on the door thrice.

"My lord, may I have a moment?"

A curt "Come in" came from the other side, and Suki took it as her cue to open the doors and step in.

The Fire Lord's study was a spacious room adorned with red and gold aesthetics. Although it was noontime, the heavy blood-red curtains currently drawn over the wide windows blocked all sunlight coming from outside, leaving the wall lamps as the sole source of dim lighting. Behind a big, intricately-carved wooden desk sat Zuko, his head bowed down as he wrote on a piece of parchment. His hair was tied up, as usual, though he was wearing normal every day clothes instead of the robes he often wore during official court meetings.

The guards quietly pulled the doors closed as Suki made her way before Zuko's desk.

"I hope I'm not interrupting, my lord," Suki started respectfully.

"You may drop the formalities now, Suki," Zuko said calmly, not looking up from the paper. "Is there something you wanted to talk about?"

"I received a letter from the Southern Water Tribe this morning."

The hand that was holding the quill stopped moving. "You mean from Sokka?" Zuko said, finally looking up at her.

The heavy makeup hid the Kyoshi Warrior leader's faint blush. "Yes," she said evenly, nevertheless. "He said that the Southern Water Tribe sends their regards."

"Ah." Zuko resumed writing. "Did he tell you about how the construction is going?"

"He said it's going smoothly and is being received well. The Southern Water Tribe Chief expresses his gratitude."

"It's a debt that was long overdue anyway…I still remember when I first set foot in the South Pole almost four years ago while on search for the Avatar," he loudly mused, more to himself than to Suki. "It was nothing but a small village of women, children and elderly. All the men had left to join the war…" He grew silent after that.

"What happened then?" Suki couldn't help but ask.

Zuko finally put his quill down and leaned back on his seat. "That was the first time I met the three of them, Sokka, Katara and Aang," he said simply. "I basically terrorized them and manhandled Sokka and Katara's grandmother."

"…Oh." Suki didn't know how to react to that.

"Funny how times have changed," Zuko concluded with an uncharacteristic small smile on his face. "Now, is that all why you came here?"

Suki put a hand in the inside pocket of her robes and pulled out a sealed scroll. "No," she said. "Sokka also said in the letter than he, along with Aang and Katara, would like to come here to the Fire Palace to visit you. I have here a formal request written by Aang."

Zuko looked visibly surprised. "What for?" He leaned forward to get the scroll from Suki's outstretched hand and unfurled it.

Aang's familiar childish handwriting greeted him.

" _Zuko,_

 _How have you been? I'm back here in the Southern Water Tribe after months of travelling around the Earth Kingdom. I'm finally having a one-month vacation from being the Avatar, yay!_

 _It's been a while since we've last met. What do you say if I come over with the usual gang, just for old times' sake? If you say yes, I'll send a letter to Toph so she can join us. I sincerely hope you can accommodate Appa too!_

 _Oh, can we stay there for a couple of days as well? I'd love to go sightseeing in the city!_

 _Hoping to get your positive response, Fire Lord!_

 _Sincerely,_

 _Aang"_

Zuko silently weighed in his options. Having the Avatar and the Southern Water Tribe Chief's children pay a goodwill visit would send a positive message to the people, as it would symbolize a strengthened alliance of the Fire Nation and the Water Tribes. On the other hand, this would also mean that the governors and military officials would all clamor to get a courtesy call from the Avatar. The little reunion that the airbender had in mind would quickly turn into another diplomacy stint.

Although admittedly, in a not-so-completely unrelated note, Zuko missed his friends, too. Being a Fire Lord afforded one numerous important connections, but very few true friends. For the past year, he had been neck-deep with his new responsibilities, and it was no news that he hasn't been doing well in the romance department either, despite being Fire Lord and all. Suffice to say, seventeen-year-old Fire Lord Zuko hasn't exactly been having the time of his life at the moment.

A little get-together with his friends once in a while wouldn't hurt.

"I'll send them my response tonight," he concluded, rolling up the scroll and keeping it in one of his disk drawers. "We'll try to make this affair as private as possible."

Even the red and white paint wasn't able to mask Suki's excitement. "Thanks, Zuko."

Zuko was already back to writing on his paper. "If that's all, you're free to go."

Suki respectfully bowed to him and silently left the room. Once he was alone, Zuko stopped writing and ran a hand over his tired face. He then pulled open one of his desk drawers and took out a small piece of thick paper. On it was a hand-painted image of him with Team Avatar on his Coronation Day as Fire Lord. As he sat in the center with an unsmiling expression on his face and the flame crown atop his head, Avatar Aang stood serenely to his right, one tattooed hand resting on Zuko's shoulder. On the Fire Lord's other side stood Katara of the Water Tribe, dressed in her typical blue tribal clothes. She, too, had her hand resting on Zuko's other shoulder. Beside Katara was her brother Sokka, posed dramatically with his boomerang. Next to Aang was the blind earthbending master Toph, her arms crossed over her chest while her unruly dark bangs covered almost half her face. Standing astutely beside Toph was Suki, dressed in her full Kyoshi Warrior uniform.

The corners of Zuko's lips curled up as he took his moment staring at the painting. After what seemed a long time, he suddenly felt like he had a real family after all.

* * *

A few days after Aang sent his letter to the Fire Lord, a messenger hawk arrived with Zuko's formal invitation for Team Avatar to spend a week at the Fire Nation Capital. The Avatar wasted no time at all in packing up his things and told Sokka and Katara the he wanted to leave at daybreak. This left the Water Tribe siblings with less than twelve hours to prepare for the long trip.

Katara inwardly groaned at this. When would these guys realize that girls don't just pack up and leave, but need _time_ to prepare for things?

"…Going again too soon?"

Katara looked up from the rucksack she has been packing with her clothes for the past hour to see her grandmother Kanna standing in the entrance to her hut.

"Gran-Gran!" she said by the way of greeting. "Come in and have a seat." She cleared some of the things she laid out in preparation for her travel to give the old woman some space to sit on. Kanna gently placed herself beside Katara's bed and watched her granddaughter as she moved around the place.

"Where are you going this time, dear?" the elder woman asked.

"To the Fire Nation," Katara replied, still busy with organizing her things. "Aang wants us to go and visit Zuko."

"Oh, you mean the young Fire Lord!" Kanna exclaimed. "Yes, I still remember that young man when he came here all those years ago…" she said, as if recalling a sweet memory.

"He grabbed you by the arm and used you to threaten us, Gran-Gran," Katara reminded her with a small chuckle.

"That doesn't mean he's a bad person, does it?" her grandmother said wisely. "He turned out to be one of the Avatar's most important allies, after all."

Katara paused at that. "So you don't feel bad about him at all?" she wanted to know.

"My dear," Kanna began. "I believe that we are all born good people. It's just that some of us are born at the wrong place, or the wrong time. Ultimately, it is our decisions who make us who we are. And it was that young Fire Lord's big decision to take our side that made him a better person that his father."

Katara looked at the elderly woman admiringly. "I wish I'm as understanding as you, Gran-Gran," she said.

"Oh, I believe you are, Katara," Kanna said with a smile. "Did you also honestly think that the Fire Lord was a bad person, even before you have fully accepted him?"

At that, Katara grew silent. Looking back, she was one of the last people to truly accept Zuko into the group, as he had betrayed her for the first time when he sided with his sister during that encounter in Ba Sing Se. Later on, as she got to know him better, she began to understand more of what happened back then. Zuko, who was exiled and stripped of his honor, had only wanted to get the approval of his father. He loved his family dearly, even at the cost of disregarding his own beliefs of right and wrong. Eventually, though, he had realized the errors in his ways and, with a heavy but determined heart, finally turned his back to his family to join the Avatar's cause.

"I was angry at him at first," Katara confessed after a while. "But I never truly thought of him as an evil person."

Kanna nodded. "Kindly send the Fire Lord my regards when you get there. I'd love to meet him again given the chance."

"Do you, now?" Katara laughed.

"Why, yes, of course," the old woman said. "By the way my granddaughter talks about him, he seems like a very interesting man."

Katara just shook her head and resumed her task at hand. "I don't know what you even mean by that, Gran-Gran."

But Kanna decided not to respond and resorted to just watching her granddaughter in silence, a mysterious, knowing smile gracing her face.

* * *

Welcome to my first ATLA fic! I may have been like 10 years too late, but I'm still giving this a try. This fic is set shortly after Ozai's defeat. Just my little take on what could have happened after the series ended.

If you're asking if it's a Zutara fic, then yes, it is a Zutara fic.

Please review and tell me what you think!


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